Aug 28, 2007

ew weeks ago I went to UCLA Medical Center. Medical students were presenting their posters about the work they did during the summer. There were many interesting ones, but there was one that caught my attention. It was about how publishers are changing from paper publications to electronic publications during the last years. This week I read a post from K.S. Descartin. She wrote about her experience with the use of e-books and all the advantages that this fact represents. Even when I like a lot techno-gadgets. I have to admit that they still have disadvantages when compared with paper materials. While you can access lot of information with a simple click. You depend on the duration of the battery of your device to access the information you want. And actually you have to buy the gadget - what not all can afford -. And what about if the system crash. No internet connection. Have you think about that? What will happen if you can not access the information you want the moment you need it. Of course technology has lot of advantages we can not deny too. But, are we using these technologies efficiently? These things make me think about the importance of digital literacy again. And the fact there is still a lot to learn. Somehow each one of us learn about it by our own. I have not found a formal course to learn about it. I think now more than ever, with lot of information you can access if you know how, learning is a matter of motivation more than a merely passive act.

This is a funny video just to think why digital literacy really matters:

Aug 10, 2007

olecular Biology is for sure a really interesting subject. Here two links to amazing lectures from UC Berkeley and MIT. We can access them on internet for free. I recommend the lectures at the MIT. The lecturers not only know what they are talking about, but they show the passion they feel for this field. And sometimes this is really important to motivate students to learn. The photo above shows Linus Pauling holding models of water molecules in a classroom at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena.

Aug 8, 2007

mbryology for sure was one of the most difficult subjects I took at the university. I was clueless about embryology and the human development inside the uterus. Trying to figure out just by looking at static graphics was so hard for me. When I found this material on internet I said to myself that how come I could not learn it before. So this is for those who are studying embryology for the first time and for them who just like to learn. The draw above is named "The foetus in the womb" was made by Leonardo da Vinci (c1510-12)

Dare to use your computer If you to download Embryonic folding you can install FlashGet and the Firefox addon Flash Got. To download the movies to your PC try with Quicktime Pro to download it click here.

Aug 7, 2007

am thinking about what we can learn at home without the necessity of moving out of there, and without the necessity of spending lot of money in tuition fees, books, transportation, etc. While doing that I start with these posts. The links I put here are all around the blog, but because I notice people do not spend time checking all the blog, I decide to select the best links and share them directly with all of you. This post is about Histology, like many other courses of basic sciences I studied at medical school, I did it in black and white only, from photocopied books I could afford. Now internet allows new generation of doctors avoid this, and study from really good material they can access for free. The photo above is "Santiago Ramón y Cajal at work", to learn more about him click in the links at the end of the post.

I think these two pages are excellent; however for medical student it is never enough. They want to have all sources of information available, even if they can not read all the information they have in hands. For those check my histology links in del.icio.us and check this links to find histology books. Finally, this phrase that is just beautiful: "The stories condemn useless rhetoric and unquestioning obedience, the qualities Cajal found most inimical to science".

Aug 6, 2007

he following is a post based on a premise "What I can learn without going to a medical school". The links posted here contain information that is available for free on internet. Anyone can watch, listen, read, capture and download -if you know how- what is there. The image above is The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp, oil on canvas by Rembrandt van Rijn, 1632. To learn a little bit more about this painting click here.